alden



(No Model.)

W. P. ALDEN.

SHOE.

No. 421,470. Patented Feb. 18, 1890'.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WVESTON P. ALDEN, OF RANDOLPH, MASSACHUSETTS.

SHOE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 421,470, dated.February 18, 1 890.

Application filed February 14,1889- Serial No. 299,866. (No model.)

To 00% whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WESTON PENDEXTER ALDEN, of Randolph, in the countyof Norfolk andState of Massachusetts, have invented an Improved Shoe, ofwhich the following is a specification, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a sectional diagramillustrating my invention as applied to a sewed shoe. Fig. 2 is a plan;and Fig. 3, a section on line 3 3, illustrating the inner sole, which isone feature of my invention.

The ordinary sewed shoe consists of an upper, an inner sole, and a welt,the upper and welt being secured to the inner sole by stitches, as shownin Fig. 1, where A indicates the inner sole, B the upper, D the welt,and cl the stitches which secure the upper and welt to the inner sole.In this class of shoes the inner sole has heretofore been channeled, soas to leave a ridge to receive the stitches 1, this ridge being integralwith the inner sole. My invention is a shoe of this class in which astrip F is secured to the inner sole A, and in which the upper and weltare secured to this strip F,my improved shoe being in all respects likethe ordinary sewed shoe of this class, except that the welt and upperare secured to the strip F, and through that strip to the inner sole,instead of being secured to a'ridge integral with the inner sole, asheretofore; and a second feature of my invention is the inner sole Awith the strip F secured to it substantially parallel with the edge ofthe inner sole.

In practicing my invention I prefer to feather-edge the inner sole-thatis, bevel off the edge as shown in Fig. 3, and then sew on a strip F, ofleather, as shown in the drawings, where the stitches which secure theleather strip F to the inner sole A are marked a, thereby forming aninner sole, which is preferably much thinner and lighter than anyadapted for use in this class of shoes as heretofore made and in whichthe strip F forms a ridge which is as well adapted for the sewing on ofthe welt and upper as any ridge which could be formed by channeling eventhe thickest inner sole. After the inner sole is thus prepared it is forall practical purposes much the same as the ordinary inner sole after itis channeled; but, as will be seen from the drawings, it differsmaterially from all other inner soles adapted for use in the manufactureof sewed shoes of this class, for its thickness at any point between theinner edges of strip F is much less than is possible where the partcorresponding to the strip F is a ridge formed by cutting a groove orchannel on each side of that ridge, as it will be clear that the heightof the ridge in the ordinary channeled inner sole depends wholly uponthe thickness of the stock, whereas in my improved inner sole the heightof the ridge formed by the strip F is wholly independent of thethickness of the stock from which the inner sole is out. After the innersole is thus prepared by attaching the strip F the upper B and welt Dare sewed on in the usual way, as indicated in Fig. 1, and the shoe isfinished as usual.

The chief advantage of my improved shoe apart from the saving inexpense, which is considerable, is that it maybe made far more flexiblethan is possible when an inner sole is used which is thickenough toallow a ridge to be formed by channeling, for that ridge must be stoutenough to hold the upper B and welt D and stitches (Z substantially asthey are held by my strip or auxiliary welt F; but my strip F can bemade of abundant thickness no matter how thin and flexible the innersole itself may be, and does not detract materially from the flexibilityof the inner sole.

' Another advantage of my invention is that the upper B and welt D maybe secured to the strip or auxiliary weltF before the latter is securedto the inner sole A, this being a wholly new method,- so far as I know,and

of considerable utility in certain classes of shoes.

I am aware of Cushmans patent,No. 279,859, dated June 19, 1883, andBradfords patent, No. 363,946, dated May 31, 1887, and disclaim all thatis set forth in'them.

What I claim as my invention is In a boot or shoe, the strip F, upper B,welt D, and inner sole A, the upper and welt secured to strip F and thestrip F secured to the inner sole A, substantially as and for the Ipurpose specified.

WESTON P. ALDEN.

W'itnesses:

J E. MAYNADIER, JOHN R. Snow.

